as president obama prepares to lead the u.s. delegation there. lester is live in soweto, south africa with the latest. >>> it's off. prince harry's race to the south pole canceled. that doesn't moon the royal is giving up on his mission to reach the bottom of the world today, sunday, december 8, 2013. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is a special edition of "today" with lester holt live in soweto, south africa, and erica hill live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >>> welcome to "today" on this sunday morning. i'm erica hill alongside jenna wolfe and dylan dreyer. as we mentioned, lester holt is in soweto, south africa, where the official events to honor the life of nelson mandela are under way today. good morning, lester. >> reporter: good morning, erica. today was the official day of prayer and reflection. all that notwithstanding, it continues to be a day or a week of celebration of the life of nelson mandela. people here in the streets in soweto once again celebrating his life. we'll tell you about that. we'll tell you a